Prudent (Prud) Zihalirwa is a young entrepreneur from the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo. You may remember his article in our newsletter recently about the situation there. He is a digital professional, passionate and committed to human rights and education. He is Youth Ambassador for the Panzi Foundation, promoting social justice in vulnerable communities, and founder and trainer at Afrix Global, an EdTech startup based in Goma. This is his diary of a week living in conflict…
Monday
Goma, Beneath the Sounds of War
I wake up to the distant sound of explosions. In Goma, the crackle of gunfire has become the rhythm of our nights. Silence, ironically, has grown more alarming. The city empties a little more with each passing day. Mondays once the start of a working week are now just another day to survive.
It’s been three months without banks, without jobs, without salaries. Many are fleeing to safer areas. But I stay.
My first reflex every morning: check messages from my learners. Then, I open my laptop. I create slides, I teach remotely. Creating is a form of resistance. Teaching is a way to not disappear.
I hold on. I hope. I wait for peace to return.
Tuesday
War Slowed Everything Down Except My Passion to Teach
The war has brought almost everything to a halt except my desire to share knowledge. Many have lost their incomes, but life goes on. So I keep teaching, for free, asking for nothing in return. Because most people simply can’t afford it.
Even if it’s just through WhatsApp. Even if it’s for only one person.
I share what I know: digital marketing, communication, CV writing, community management. Some learners join from refugee camps in Burundi, others from unstable neighborhoods nearby. I stay here, grounded in one belief: a single skill can change a life.
The digital world has no borders. Even in the midst of chaos, learning is possible. And so is hope.
Wednesday
Afrix Global: A Space for Hope
Every Wednesday, I meet with my team at Afrix Global. Even in the middle of this crisis, we connect, we talk, we brainstorm. Keeping the connection alive keeps hope alive.
We work on our projects our website, educational content, awareness campaigns. Our mission is clear: to train, to connect, to empower. In a region too often forgotten, our startup has become an act of peace.
For me, every challenge hides a new opportunity. As long as there’s an idea to bring to life, a young mind to awaken, a skill to pass on Afrix Global will keep going. Even under rebel occupation, we continue building digital bridges.
We’re preparing. Always preparing.
Thursday
When Silence Speaks
On Thursdays, I slow down. I wake up, do a few push-ups, and then settle into my day. I read, I write, I think. Away from the noise, I listen to myself.
Internet is shaky here, but I check what I can. I look for answers. For inspiration.
One song plays on repeat: “Everything Can Change.” It helps me believe again. I think about this burning world, about my wounded city, and about my role in it all.
Is it to teach? To inspire? To resist? Maybe it’s all of the above.
Silence speaks. It brings me back to what matters. It reminds me that as long as we think, pray, and hope we’re still alive.
Friday
The Environment Forgotten in War
Yes, there is war. The noise, the loss, the urgency of survival. But in the middle of it all, there’s something I still hold onto something many see as secondary: the environment. I haven’t forgotten it.
I’ve joined groups like YOUNGO online, and here in Goma, I volunteer with EDA ( Anable the disable actions). I give what I can, even when everything feels like it’s falling apart. We talk about improved cook stoves, ecological charcoal, inclusion. We do what we can, even in the chaos.
This Friday, I got rejection emails for scholarship applications. It stung. I had put so much hope into them. But I reminded myself it’s not a wall, it’s a step. Just another step.
I want to learn more. Understand better. Go deeper. Because I believe that protecting the environment is a form of peace. A lasting peace. And as long as I can do something even small, even unnoticed I’ll keep going.
Even if the world is focused elsewhere, I choose to believe the Earth is worth fighting for. Even here. Even now.
Saturday
Culture and Music as Refuge
I’m not a singer. I don’t play an instrument. But music music moves me deeply. It calms me, carries me, reminds me that things can still be okay.
So most Saturdays, I go searching for a place where music lives. A bar with live tunes, a street corner with an impromptu karaoke, a little moment of art in the middle of it all.
This Saturday, it was a small recording studio. Nothing fancy but inside, magic was happening. I watched a group of young people record a song from start to finish. They laughed, restarted, focused. I felt something powerful freedom. A moment of light in a heavy world.
Culture is a refuge. And sometimes, just watching someone create is enough to believe in tomorrow a little more.
Sunday
My Congo, My Dream, Our Future
This Sunday, at church, my heart was full. I was thinking about my country. About all the things we dreamed of before the war the plans, the hopes, the ideas for Goma, for North Kivu. Everything once felt possible.
Today, even in the chaos, I keep dreaming. I pray that this wounded youth will rise again. That our Congo will be reborn. My dream hasn’t changed: a united, educated, free DRC. A land of innovation, peace, and culture.
I want to believe in that future. My commitment is my way of saying yes to hope.
And to the world, I say: look at us we’re not done hoping yet.